Review: The “Touch” of KATSEYE

Written By: Alex Tran | Photo By: Cody Critcheloe

Over the past couple of years, a pattern has emerged. According to ChartMasters, solo artists like The Weekend and Billie Ellish have amassed 105 million listeners monthly, dominating the music charts. However, a joint initiative between Geffen Records, an American record label, and Hybe Records, a South-Korean record company, formed a new girl group called KATSEYE consisting of six members. 

Three members originate from outside the US: Manon Bannerman, Sophia Laforteza and Yoonchae Jeon hail from Switzerland, the Philippines and South Korea respectively. Meanwhile, the other three members — Daniela Avanzini, Lara Raj, and Megan Skiendiel — were born and raised in the US. Each member competed in a reality dance competition called Dream Academy, the subject of the recently-released Netflix documentary “Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE.” After the documentary’s release in August, the group released their first two singles, “Debut” and “Touch,” off their new EP “SIS (Soft is Strong).”

“Touch”: A Review

Millions of listeners tuned into the highly anticipated single “Touch,” garnering roughly 55 million streams on Spotify as of this article’s release. Before analyzing the song itself, it’s important to examine the music video for “Touch,” as music videos have importance to the marketing of Korean pop groups. From the flawless choreography to the iconic crashing of the chandelier, the video was captivating and eye-catching. Furthermore, the choreography is camp and playful, already being replicated by fans on TikTok under the hashtag touch. The “Touch” music video focuses more on the motif of the EP, which is reminiscent of Winx Club, an animated series that aired in 2004.

With co-producers Blake Slatkin, Omer Fedi and Cashmere Cat, it is no wonder the track became a viral sensation on social media. Slatkin and Fedi were responsible for tracks like “STAY” by Kid Laroi and Justin Bieber as well as “Unholy” by Sam Smith and Kim Petras. Cashmere Cat, another renowned producer, created tracks like “Die For You” by The Weekend and “Señorita” by Camila Cabello. The high-spirit lyrics and upbeat tempo invoke a sense of joining the girls in dancing to the tune and break up the domination of slow tempo pop music. Many listeners yearned for an extension of the song, as seen by users on online forums like Reddit. However, the current length of the song keeps the lyrics catchy, rather than repetitive, and in turn ensures the longevity of the song, something a new group like KATSEYE needs to succeed. Furthermore, the members' voices all mesh extremely well together, with no one overpowering any of the other five members of the group and demonstrating the power their voices have together.  

“Touch” has been a commercially successful sequel to KATSEYE first single “Debut.” The group is launching itself during a contentious year for music, with many dormant artists releasing albums and singles. Despite this, the group promotes their work on all social media platforms and garners streaming numbers and interactions on their social media posts. Furthermore, social media collaborations with Korean pop groups like TOMORROWXTOGETHER and American artists like Tate McRae have only bolstered their popularity to newer and wider demographics that have never heard of KATSEYE before. The success of KATSEYE offers hope for the revival of girl groups for Western audiences.